Identity theft

While use of a pseudonym or alias is not necessarily unlawful, identity theft is the deliberate use of someone else's identity, usually as a method to gain a financial advantage or obtain credit and other benefits in the other person's name, and perhaps to the other person's disadvantage or loss. The person whose identity has been assumed may suffer adverse consequences if they are held responsible for the perpetrator's actions. Identity theft occurs when someone uses another's personally identifying information, like their name, identifying number, or credit card number, without their permission, to commit fraud or other crimes.

The term identity theft was coined in 1964.

"Determining the link between data breaches and identity theft is challenging, primarily because identity theft victims often do not know how their personal information was obtained," and identity theft is not always detectable by the individual victims, according to a report done for the FTC. Identity fraud is often but not necessarily the consequence of identity theft. Someone can steal or misappropriate personal information without then committing identity theft using the information about every person, such as when a major data breach occurs. A US Government Accountability Office study determined that "most breaches have not resulted in detected incidents of identity theft". The report also warned that "the full extent is unknown". A later unpublished study by Carnegie Mellon University noted that "Most often, the causes of identity theft is not known," but reported that someone else concluded that "the probability of becoming a victim to identity theft as a result of a data breach is ... around only 2%". More recently, an association of consumer data companies noted that one of the largest data breaches ever, accounting for over four million records, resulted in only about 1,800 instances of identity theft, according to the company whose systems were breached.

Jason Bateman

Jason Kent Bateman (born January 14, 1969) is an American actor, director and producer who rose to prominence as a high-profile adolescent actor in the 1980s, in sitcoms such as Silver Spoons and The Hogan Family, before returning in the early 2000s in the role of Michael Bluth on the critically acclaimed sitcom Arrested Development, for which he won a TV Land Award, a Golden Globe, and a Satellite Award. He has since established himself in Hollywood by appearing in several films, including Juno (2007), Hancock (2008), Up in the Air (2009), Horrible Bosses (2011), Paul (2011), The Change-Up (2011), Identity Thief (2013), Bad Words (2014), Horrible Bosses 2 (2014), and The Gift (2015). He is the younger brother of actress Justine Bateman.

Early life

Bateman was born in Rye, New York. His mother, Victoria Elizabeth, a former flight attendant for Pan Am, was English, born in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. His father, Kent Bateman, is an actor, writer and director of film and television, and founder of a repertory stage in Hollywood. Bateman's older sister, Justine, is known for her work on the sitcom Family Ties. Bateman also has three half-brothers. Bateman was four years old when his family moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, and later to California. Bateman told Best Life magazine that he and his sister supported their parents with the paychecks they earned from their television shows; he also revealed that he was managed by his father until Bateman dissolved the business relationship at the age of 20.

Identity Thief

Identity Thief is a 2013 American crime comedy film directed by Seth Gordon, written by Craig Mazin, and starring Jason Bateman and Melissa McCarthy. The film tells a story about a man (Bateman) whose identity is stolen by a woman (McCarthy).

Despite being a commercial success, grossing over $170 million worldwide on a $35 million budget, the film received generally negative reviews from critics.

Plot

In Denver, accountant Sandy Patterson (Jason Bateman) buys identity theft protection from Diana (Melissa McCarthy), a con artist, over the phone and reveals all of his personal information. At work, after Sandy clashes with his obnoxious and bullying boss, Harold Cornish (Jon Favreau), he receives a phone call that reminds him he has an appointment at a salon in Florida. Confused, he puts it out of his mind when co-worker Daniel Casey (John Cho) suggests they and several others leave Cornish's company and start their own firm; Sandy agrees to join them.

When paying for gas, Sandy's credit card is declined, and the clerk cuts it up. As the credit card company tells him that he has spent huge amounts of money in Florida, he is arrested for missing a court date there. At the police station, Detective Reilly (Morris Chestnut) determines Diana has stolen Sandy's identity. The situation worsens when cops ask Daniel, now his boss, about Sandy's possession of drugs. Reilly says Sandy's name was used to buy drugs from someone named Paolo (Jonathan Banks). When the cops say they can do nothing due to jurisdictional issues unless the identity thief is in Denver, Sandy offers to retrieve her and convince her to clear his name, despite his wife, Trish (Amanda Peet) concerns.

Melissa McCarthy

Melissa Ann McCarthy (born August 26, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, writer, fashion designer, and producer. McCarthy first gained recognition for her role as Sookie St. James on the television series Gilmore Girls (2000–2007). On the ABC sitcom Samantha Who? (2007–2009), she portrayed Dena. McCarthy was then cast as Molly Flynn on the CBS sitcom Mike & Molly, a role that earned her a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, as well as two award nominations during subsequent seasons. McCarthy has also been nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her work as host on Saturday Night Live three years consecutively.

McCarthy achieved major success and fame for her breakthrough film role as Megan Price in the 2011 comedy hit Bridesmaids, which garnered her numerous award nominations including an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress, a BAFTA nomination and a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. In 2013, she co-starred in the comedy films Identity Thief and The Heat. She has also appeared in the films The Nines, The Back-up Plan, Life as We Know It, This Is 40 and The Hangover Part III. In 2014, McCarthy starred in the comedy Tammy and the comedy-drama film St. Vincent. In 2015, she headlined the action comedy Spy, for which she received Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical nomination. In 2016, McCarthy is set to star in comedy films The Boss and Ghostbusters.

Seth Gordon

Seth Gordon is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and film editor. He has produced and directed both for film and television, including for PBS, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the United Nations Staff 1% for Development Fund. His films have screened at the Sundance Film Festival and Slamdance Film Festival.

Life and career

Gordon grew up in Evanston, Illinois. He attended Yale University where he studied architecture until leaving in 1997 to teach high school for six months in the small village of Shimanyiro, Kenya.While there he helped secure United Nations financing to finish construction of a school, and began filming what would eventually become the documentary Building Shimanyiro. Upon returning to Yale, Gordon taught himself how to edit his footage on an Avid editing machine. Later, he helped shoot Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck's Dixie Chicks documentary Shut Up & Sing, and after working as cinematographer, editor and producer on various films, he gained prominence with his documentary The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters.